Maria Louise Kanellis (born February 25, 1982) is an Americansinger-songwriter, actress, model, and professional wrestler, also known simply as Maria. She is best known for her time with World Wrestling Entertainment, and is working for Ring of Honor as the valet of real life boyfriend Mike Bennett.

Diva Search and debut (2004–2005)
She competed in the Raw Diva Search in 2004, deciding to enter the contest after seeing an advertisement while watching Raw. Even though she only placed fifth in the contest, she was hired by the company. She stood out in the contest by giving fellow contestant Carmella DeCesare the finger after being eliminated from the contest. Maria began making appearances at the Ohio Valley Wrestling (OVW) training facility under head trainer Paul Heyman. She contributed booking ideas, and her work at OVW earned her a spot on the Raw brand roster. Maria was brought on to Raw as a ditzy backstage interviewer and the host of WWE KissCam in November 2004. Maria was given the dumb blonde gimmick despite having brown hair. She quickly earned a reputation as the oblivious backstage reporter—Maria seemed to ask the wrong questions, irritating and amusing WWE Superstars and Divas.

In 2005, Maria began to get very physical—in and out of the ring. She was defeated in her first official match on the January 10, 2005 episode of Raw by Christy Hemme in a Lingerie Pillow Fight. She also competed in a Fulfill Your Fantasy Diva Battle Royal at Taboo Tuesday for the WWE Women's Championship but was the first to be eliminated by Trish Stratus and Mickie James. In another physical moment, Stratus slapped Maria so hard that one of her fillings legitimately fell out. On November 14, Maria competed in a non-title Diva Battle Royal at the Eddie Guerrero tribute Raw show. Maria stood by herself for most of the match, only getting involved when she saw the opportunity to eliminate a competitor, a strategy that proved effective as she eliminated both Jillian Hall and Victoria. She was one of the last three women left in the match but was eliminated by both Melina and Trish Stratus.

On the November 28 episode of Raw, Maria interviewed then-Raw General Manager Eric Bischoff and asked him whether or not he thought he was going to be fired. He then booked her in a match with Kurt Angle out of spite, and Maria was laid out with the Angle Slam. As a result, one week later, Maria testified in the trial against Bischoff, who was being fired because of his controversial actions as General Manager. As Mick Foley questioned her, she answered, "Last week Bischoff abused his power in a way that was both malicious and capricious, and it's this rash of discourse that ultimately led to a locker room of disdain and mutiny, and it should be grounds for his immediate dismissal.

In early 2006, Maria defeated Victoria in a match. Afterward, she was attacked by Vince's Devils (Victoria, Torrie Wilson, and Candice Michelle), but she was saved by Ashley Massaro. During a commercial break that night, Vince McMahon announced a Gauntlet Bra & Panties Match for New Year's Revolution between all five girls that had previously been in the ring. At New Year's Revolution, Maria was the first to enter the Gauntlet match and eliminated Candice Michelle and Torrie Wilson before being eliminated by Victoria. The match was ultimately won by Massaro. On April 10, episode of Raw, Maria received a shot at the WWE Women's Championship, but was defeated by the defending champion Mickie James.

Maria teamed with John Cena to take on Edge and Lita in the main event on the February 6 episode of Raw. Maria scored the victory after a spear meant for Cena hit Lita. One month later, Maria lost a singles match to Lita after missing a clothesline and falling prey to Lita's DDT. After the match, Edge was preparing to spear Maria, but Mick Foley ran in to help her. On October 16, Maria won a Fatal Four Way Bra and Panties match against Victoria, Candice Michelle, and Torrie Wilson to advance to the semi-finals in a Women's Championship Tournament. Maria, however, lost in the semi-finals of the tournament to Lita.

On the January 1, 2007 episode of Raw, Maria attempted to interview Kevin Federline but was instead slapped by Melina and called a "bitch". This led to a match between the two later that night, with Melina winning with a roll-up following a failed attempt at a dropkick. At New Year's Revolution, Maria and Candice Michelle ran to the ring during the Women's Championship match between Victoria and Mickie James to stop Melina from interfering, helping their friend Mickie to retain the championship. For two consecutive weeks afterward, Maria had two tag team partners—Mickie James and Jeff Hardy, respectively—to take on Melina and a partner. She lost the match with James, but won the other with Hardy. As a part of her entrance when teaming with Hardy, she mimicked the dance he performs at the top of the entrance ramp, a moment she later claimed as a favorite in her career. Maria began an on-screen romance with Santino Marella in June 2007. She also resumed competing in the ring occasionally, often jobbing, or losing quickly, in short matches. On the November 5 episode of Raw, Marella was confronted by the returning Stone Cold Steve Austin for criticizing his movie, The Condemned. As a part of the storyline, the argument ended as Marella received a Stone Cold Stunner from Austin, who then went backstage, only to return with a Budweiser beer truck to hose down Marella and Maria with beer.

After former Playboy cover-girl Ashley Massaro's return in early 2008, Kanellis engaged in backstage segments where Ashley suggested Maria should be on the cover of Playboy, including at the Royal Rumble, to the disdain of Marella. As a part of the Playboy storyline, Maria defeated Beth Phoenix on February 18, to "earn the right" to be on the cover of the magazine. During her Playboy cover unveiling, Maria's cover was plastered over with images of Marella. After Marella offered an ultimatum of posing for the magazine or staying with him as a couple, she stated, "No man and no one is going to make this decision for me" and broke up with her on-screen boyfriend. Maria, along with Ashley, (who replaced Candice Michelle) were defeated by Phoenix and Melina at WrestleMania XXIV in a Playboy BunnyMania Lumberjack match. After the match, Maria passionately kissed the Master of Ceremonies, Snoop Dogg.

As part of the 2008 WWE Supplemental Draft, Maria was drafted to the SmackDown brand. She made her debut on the August 1 episode of SmackDown by defeating Victoria. On the October 17 episode of SmackDown!, Maria won a "Las Vegas Dice on a Pole" match to become the number one contender for the WWE Divas Championship. Maria lost a subsequent match for the title against then-champion Michelle McCool. She participated in the Raw Divas vs. Smackdown Divas match at Survivor Series where she eliminated Jillian Hall, but still her team lost. On the December 19 episode of SmackDown! she got an upset victory over Michelle McCool but was defeated by Maryse in a number one contenders match for the title. On the December 26 episode of SmackDown!, she served as a guest referee in the Divas Championship match between Maryse and Michelle McCool where Maryse became the new champion. After the match Michelle turned heel and attacked Maria injuring her shoulder. Maria returned and attacked Michelle during a match, on the January 21, 2009, episode of SmackDown. On the February 10 episode of SmackDown, she defeated McCool following interference from Eve Torres. She also competed at WrestleMania XXV for the "Miss Wrestlemania" crown,but was eliminated by Victoria.

She made her in ring return on the July 3 episode of SmackDown teaming with Melina to defeat Michelle McCool and Layla. Soon after, she entered into an on-screen relationship with Dolph Ziggler, despite her being a fan favorite and him being a villainous character. At Night of Champions, Maria accompanied Ziggler to his match with Rey Mysterio. In the following weeks, Melina implied that Ziggler was cheating on Maria, which Maria did not believe. Maria and Dolph Ziggler later broke up on the October 10 episode of SmackDown in a backstage segment, after she cost him his match.

Maria then took a brief hiatus from the ring to film the Celebrity Apprentice but returned on the December 4 episode of SmackDown by helping Mickie James fend off an attack by Michelle McCool and Layla. She made her in-ring return the following week, teaming up with James to defeat McCool and Layla. On December 14, Maria won the Slammy Award for Diva of the Year, which was voted for by WWE fans. On the February 12, 2010, episode of SmackDown, Maria began an onscreen relationship with Matt Hardy. Her last match in WWE was a six-person tag team match on the February 25 episode of WWE Superstars, where she, Hardy, and The Great Khali lost to The Hart Dynasty and Natalya Neidhart. She was released from her WWE contract on February 26.

Maria confirmed via her Twitter account that she would be appearing at Ring of Honor's Final Battle pay-per-view on December 23, 2011. She accompanied her real-life boyfriend Mike Bennett as a heel, in a three-way elimination match against Jay Lethal and El Generico for the ROH World Television Championship. At the event, Bennett was unsuccessful in winning the title. Kanellis continued accompanying Bennett at the January 7, 2012, tapings of Ring of Honor Wrestling, where she was dubbed the "First Lady of ROH".

At the June 21 tapings of Ring of Honor Wrestling, Kanellis accompied Bennett and Bob to ring, where they lost to Eddie Edwards and Adam Cole. After the match, Kanellis, Bennett, Bob attacked Cole and Edwards, but was stopped by Sara Del Rey. At the Boiling Point pay-per-view on August 11, Maria and Bennett lost to Del Rey and Edwards in an mixed tag team match. Kanellis' storyline with Del Ray ended abruptly the following month, when Del Ray signed a contract with WWE. In September 2012, Kanellis and Bennett became involved in a storyline with Mike Mondo after he kissed Kanellis during one of Bennett's matches. Mondo contiuned to cost Bennett matches, until Glory by Honor in October, when Bennett defeated Mondo to end the feud. At the November 3 tapings of Ring of Honor Wrestling, Maria accompied Bennett to the ring where he unsuccessfully challenged Kevin Steen for the ROH World Heavyweight Championship. On December 16 at Final Battle 2012: Doomsday pay-per-view, Kanellis along with Bob accompied Bennett to the ring where he defeated Jerry Lynn in his final ROH match before retirement. At the Border Wars pay-per-view on May 4, 2013, Kanellis accompied Bennett to the ring where he was defeated by Roderick Strong, despite Kanellis attempting to interfere on Bennett's behalf. On September 19, Maria and Bennett defeated The Brutal Burgers (Brutal Bob Evans & Cheeseburger) in a Intergender tag team match. On October 26, during Bennett's match with Kevin Steen at the Glory by Honor XII pay-per-view, Kanellis tried to interfere but was attacked by Lisa Marie Varon.

Kanellis and Bennett returned to ROH at the January 4, 2014, tapings of Ring of Honor Wrestling which aired on February 1, with Kanellis helping Bennett defeat Cedric Alexander.

On February 25, 2012, Maria won a tournament to determine the inaugural Family Wrestling Entertainment (FWE) Women's Champion. The victory also marked Kanellis' first championship in professional wrestling. She held the championship until March 24, when she lost it to Winter in a three-way match match also involving Rosita. In July, Kanellis regained the championship from Winter. Kanellis successfully defended her title against Angelina Love at FWE: No Limits.

In September 2012, Kanellis made her debut for Chikara, managing Mike Bennett and The Young Bucks to the finals of the 2012 King of Trios tournament.

In 2004, she was a contestant on the reality show, Outback Jack. She made it to the final three before being eliminated.
During the week of November 5, 2007, she appeared on five episodes of Family Feud with several other WWE superstars. She also appeared on the February 6, 2008 episode of Project Runway with some of the other WWE Divas. On August 17, 2008, Maria, Candice Michelle, and Eve Torres were on an episode of Sunset Tan. Kanellis later appeared on VH1's Top 20 Video Countdown, along with John Cena. On December 17, 2009, she was a guest host on G4's Attack of the Show. Kanellis began a new career as a mixed martial arts announcer for HDNet on March 26, 2010 at the King of the Cage event in Reno, Nevada. Kanellis was also a contestant on the Celebrity Apprentice, which premiered in March 2010. She was eliminated on the May 16 episode. She placed fifth out of fourteen contestants.

Kanellis was first asked to pose for Playboy when she was nineteen years old, but she turned down the offer in fear of embarrassing her sister. She eventually posed for the cover of the April 2008 issue, with an accompanying nude pictorial. For the pictorial, she chose her own wardrobe and made the black hooded jacket she wore in one of the photos. That same year, FHM named her 53rd of 100 on their "The Sexiest Women 2008" list.

Kanellis is also a singer and released her debut album Sevin Sins on April 13, 2010, with "Fantasy" as the first single.

In early 2011, Kanellis starred in online comedy webshow Funny or Die, and in March 2011 she launched her own perfume line called Signature. In September 2011, Kanellis launched her DVD line in conjunction with Code Red DVD called Maria's B Movie Mayhem. Kanellis will be appearing in Manos: The Search for Valley Lodge, the upcoming 2013 sequel to the cult movie Manos: The Hands of Fate.

In January 2014, Kanellis and Bennett launched a weekly podcast called Mike & Maria in Wonderland.